Dear Friends,
Like many organizations, the Coronavirus pandemic caused us to dramatically change in 2020. As the virus spread quickly throughout the world in the first quarter, most of our 2020 plans and goals were immediately made obsolete. Our mission to support healthcare providers and CHG Healthcare employees find their passion to give back to their communities was swiftly minimized or eliminated as cities and communities around the world went into lockdown and isolation because of COVID-19.
We were thrilled that the Making a Difference was able to quickly pivot from our original plans in order to support CHG Healthcare employees, healthcare providers and nonprofits in dealing with the pandemic. Over the course of 2020, we provided almost $600,000 in COVID related resources and grants. The grants went into three main areas; providing assistance to frontline healthcare providers, supporting CHG Healthcare employees, and helping healthcare clinics provide COVID-19 care in underserved communities.
During this unprecedented pandemic, healthcare providers were the true heroes because of their tireless work in treating those who contracted the virus. Our disaster relief grants focused on frontline healthcare providers and getting them needed support. We gave funds to organizations whose services ranged from: providing food to healthcare workers, shipping in personal protective equipment, COVID-19 testing kits and training to frontline personnel, to deploying medical and social volunteers to underserved areas that were hardest hit by the pandemic, such as the Navajo Nation.
Through our sustainable healthcare grant program partnerships, we provided valuable financial gifts to several healthcare clinics aiding the underserved in our local communities. Our partner clinics, such as the Peoples Health Clinic in Utah and the Caridad Center in Florida, quickly found at the early stages of the pandemic that they needed to shift their focus to include COVID-19 treatment and education for their patients. We provided $90,000 in ongoing grants to our partner organizations.
Much of our time and resources in 2020 was shifted to help CHG Healthcare employees weather the disruption and uncertainty caused by the pandemic. In March, we created the Coronavirus Immediate Relief Fund which provided small grants to individuals who felt financial stress. Over the course of 2020, the fund provided 869 grants. For employees who had larger financial needs, the Making a Difference Foundation teamed with one of our partner organizations, the CHG Employee Compassion Fund (ECF), by providing them with $150,000 in donations.
Although 2020 was the not the year that we planned at the Making a Difference Foundation, as we look back, we are both extremely satisfied and honored that we were able to pivot to help in the response of COVID-19. As we move into the new year, we are looking forward to recommitting our efforts to our mission through supporting healthcare providers and CHG Healthcare employees find their passion of making a difference in their communities and across the world.
Thank you all for your belief in our work and ongoing contributions. Without you, none of this happens.
Sincerely,
Kevin Ricklefs
President, Making a Difference Foundation
Christine VanCampen
Chair, Making a Difference Foundation
